Xcel to file request for more wind power proposals
Times staff report | St. Cloud Times | Feb 4, 2013 | www.sctimes.com
Times staff report | St. Cloud Times | Feb 4, 2013 | www.sctimes.com
Xcel Energy has notified state regulators that it plans to seek proposals for up to 200 megawatts of wind projects that would qualify for a recently extended federal production tax credit.
Xcel intends to issue the request for proposals as soon as Feb. 15, the company stated Monday in a news release. To qualify for the tax credit, a wind project must begin construction by the end of 2013.
On Jan. 1, Congress extended the production tax credit, which provides wind farms with an income tax credit of 2.2 cents for every kilowatt hour of electricity they produce, as part of the budget deal to avoid the fiscal cliff.
Xcel previously said it didn’t need to actively seek new wind resources because it’s already meeting the state’s renewable energy requirements.
The utility is “open to adding cost-effective wind projects that could provide long-term value to our customers,” stated Judy Poferl, president and CEO of Northern States Power Co.-Minnesota, an Xcel company.
Three proposed wind projects in Stearns County have received approval by state regulators but are seeking a utility to purchase the electricity they will produce.
URL to article: https://www.wind-watch.org/news/2013/02/05/xcel-to-file-request-for-more-wind-power-proposals/